The story

China's death toll from a massive earthquake soared by thousands Wednesday as troops rushed to a dam feared critically damaged.

About 2,000 troops were sent to work on the dam near the epicenter of Monday's earthquake, after reports of severe cracks, state-run media reported.

The Ministry of Water Resources warned that an irrigation system and Dujiangyan City -- which has a population of about 630,000 -- "would be swamped," if major problems emerged at the dam, China.org said. Read full article »